Chapter Text
“Skipping lessons, eh?”
Luo Binghe screamed, dropped the firewood painfully on his feet, and looked around in horror for the source of the voice. It sounded like Shizun. Luo Binghe eyed the wall next to him as snickers reached his ears.
“I’m sorry! I was just trying to finish my chores! Ming-shixiong said I had to finish my chores before I could attend classes,” Luo Binghe explained.
“What? That brat. Don’t listen to him! You didn’t come to this peak to be a servant. You came to cultivate,” the voice said irritably.
“The chores will help with that. Ming-shixiong only wants to help me strengthen myself and become a more diligent person,” Luo Binghe insisted loyally. The voice sighed in exasperation.
“Because the world is made up only of kind and caring people,” the voice said sarcastically. “Think about it: how are you ever going to progress, if you spend your study time doing chores?”
“I just have to work harder and I’ll manage,” Luo Binghe said stubbornly.
“What does that even mean? How are you going to ‘work harder?’ Can you, for example, learn to play the guqin faster than anyone else? Will you learn better later when you’re worn out from carrying firewood? Can you neglect regular practice and teach your fingers to be cleverer all at once through sheer dint of will? These things take time to learn, shidi. There are no shortcuts. So, leave that firewood and get to class!”
“I-,” Luo Binghe began, torn by the desire to follow instructions from two differing sources. “Ming-shixiong is the head disciple. I have to do what he says.”
“Listen to this shixiong of yours; that Ming Fan is a little shit.” Luo Binghe gave a scandalized gasp and clapped a hand over his mouth. “He isn’t trying to help you. He’s just bullying you. You wouldn’t be the first person whose life he’s made difficult on this peak. If he gives you any more trouble, tell him I said to back off.”
“And who are you?” Luo Binghe asked.
“You haven’t heard of me? I’m Shen Yuan, your shixiong.” The voice said.
“Shen-shixong. Are you related to Shizun?” Luo Binghe asked.
“We’re twins. Therefore, everybody on this peak, except my brother, has to listen to me. It’s one of the joys of nepotism.”
“Ah,” Luo Binghe said uncertainly. After a pause, Shen Yuan spoke up again.
“Don’t forget; you were chosen for this peak, just like everybody else was. You don’t have to do anybody else’s chores to earn your place here. You already belong. You have as much right to be here as any other student does. And you don’t deserve to be treated badly.” Luo Binghe was touched. “Have you been eating properly, or have you been too busy doing Ming-shixiong’s chores to get breakfast?”
“I have been pretty busy,” Luo Binghe said cautiously.
“Here, catch,” Shen Yuan said. A moment later, over the top of the wall came a large apple. In his surprise, Luo Binghe fumbled with the apple and dropped it on the ground, but it was a beautiful treat, bruise and all. Luo Binghe picked it up and almost started eating it immediately in his hunger.
“Thank you for-,” Luo Binghe didn’t know how to finish that sentence without either directly or indirectly speaking ill of Ming Fan. Instead, he just repeated, “Thank you, Shen-shixiong! Thank you for everything! I’ll be going now.” Out of habit, Luo Binghe bowed to the wall in the direction he guessed Shen Yuan was. Embarrassed by bowing to a wall, Luo Binghe hurried to leave.
“Hey!” Shen Yuan called.
“Yes, Shen-shixiong?” Luo Binghe asked.
“I don’t get out much, so I can’t keep an eye on you unless you come by and visit me.”
“I can come back?” Luo Binghe asked hopefully.
“Please do. I can always use the company. Though, be sure your Shizun is busy elsewhere when you do. He can be very… territorial.”
“I will, Shen-shixiong!”
…
“Hello?” Luo Binghe called tentatively over the wall.
“Hello,” called Shen Yuan.
“Shen-shixiong?” Luo Binghe said hopefully.
“I’m here. Thanks for coming by. What’s going on? Did you miss breakfast again?” Shen Yuan asked.
“No, I’m fine! I just wanted to talk with you!”
“Well, I’ve got some extra food here, if you want it,” Shen Yuan offered.
“I couldn’t take your food, Shen-shixiong!” Luo Binghe protested.
“Come on, you’d be doing me a favor. If I give it to you, my brother won’t nag me about not having eaten it when he gets back. Please?” Shen Yuan asked.
“Then, I suppose I could take it for you,” Luo Binghe said.
“Great!” Shen Yuan said. Luo Binghe heard something knock into the wall and watched carefully as a picnic box tied up with string rose above the wall and was then lowered towards the ground a few inches. It didn’t make it close enough to Luo Binghe for him to grab it, and he wondered how he would manage to get the thing, but then it started shaking and dropped into Luo Binghe’s waiting arms. When Luo Binghe looked back up, he saw the crook of a cane above the wall.
“Did you catch it?” Shen Yuan asked.
“I did, Shen-shixiong!” Luo Binghe assured him.
“Good. When you’ve finished, toss it back over this way,” Shen Yuan instructed.
“Alright!” Luo Binghe opened the picnic box and found a nice, albeit shaken up, meal inside. “Did you eat any of this?” Luo Binghe asked, noting how full it was.
“Don’t worry,” Shen Yuan said. “I don’t have cooties.”
“I would never-!” Luo Binghe began. “I didn’t mean to say you did! I was just wondering why you didn’t eat it. It looks really good.”
“There’s nothing wrong with it. I’m just not hungry,” Shen Yuan said nonchalantly. “Now, get to eating.”
“Yes, Shen-Shixiong!” And Luo Binghe dug in heartily. He had eaten breakfast that morning, as well as lunch, but it was mid afternoon and he was hungry again.
“What is your name, anyway?” Shen Yuan asked.
“Luo Binghe,” Luo Binghe answered between bites.
“Luo Binghe,” Shen Yuan repeated. There was a long silence. It was so long that Luo Binghe wondered if he’d said something wrong or if Shen-shixiong had heard something bad about him. Luo Binghe wished they weren’t having this conversation through a wall, but he wasn’t allowed into his shizun’s personal quarters. “A fine name. How long have you been a disciple here?”
“Only for the last two months, Shixiong,” Luo Binghe said.
“How old are you, Luo-shidi?” Shen Yuan asked.
“I’m ten,” Luo Binghe said.
“You’re just a sprout then. A sprout of a white lotus!” Luo Binghe wasn’t sure what that meant, but Shen Yuan said it so affectionately that Luo Binghe was pleased by the phrase. “How are you finding it here? Are you enjoying your lessons?” Shen Yuan asked.
Luo Binghe didn’t know how to respond. He didn’t want to lie, but he didn’t want to say anything that might offend Shen Yuan.
“They are very difficult. I have much catching-up to do,” Luo Binghe said.
“Well, of course. You were doing Ming-shixiong’s chores instead of attending your classes with the hall masters for two months. You’re also the newest student on the peak, so you’re naturally behind everyone else. But, before long, if you keep up your efforts, you’ll figure everything out.”
“As you say, Shen-shixiong,” Luo Binghe said.
“What’s troubling you the most?” Shen Yuan asked.
“Cultivation,” Luo Binghe said forlornly. “I’m learning how to read as quickly as I can, but I can’t read my cultivation manual yet, so I have no idea what to do. Everyone else knows how to read and they’ve already been cultivating for a long time.”
“Don’t bother comparing yourself to others in this. With cultivating, it’s all about comparing where you are to where you’ve been. It isn’t a competition. However, if you’re really worried, this shixiong can explain it to you,” Shen Yuan offered.
“Oh, please, Shen-shixiong! I would be so grateful if you would!” Luo Binghe said enthusiastically.
Thus began Luo Binghe’s semi-regular tutoring session/afternoon snack time with Shen Yuan. Shen Yuan turned out to be a proper authority on the subject of cultivation and explained the process of finding and circulating qi in a way that Luo Binghe found easy to understand and apply. Before long, Luo Binghe hit his stride with cultivating and he was able to steadily build up his cultivation base. Thus, the study sessions bounced around between different subjects as Binghe worked through the constant stream of material the hall masters gave the disciples.
Luckily, Shen Qingqiu always worked with the senior disciples in the afternoons, unless he wasn’t on the peak, so he didn’t find out about Luo Binghe’s meetings with Shen Yuan. Other things prevented these meetings, however. Sometimes Shen Yuan was sleeping or another peak lord was visiting. Sometimes Luo Binghe was too worn out from his training to come by. He hated to miss these meetings, however, so he generally dragged himself to the familiar stretch of wall even when he was exhausted. Shen Yuan and Ning Yingying were the only people on the peak who were actually kind to him and he wanted to spend as much time with them as possible.
As frequently as they met up, Luo Binghe didn’t actually manage to see Shen Yuan with his own eyes until nearly a year after joining the peak. On a day that Shen Yuan had gone down the mountain with the senior disciples so they could get practical experience fighting monsters, Luo Binghe hadn’t noticed that a guest had arrived. So, he had gone to the wall and called out for Shen Yuan. Another person responded instead.
“Who’s out there?” A stern voice demanded.
“Luo Binghe,” Luo Binghe responded immediately. He started trying to put together a justification for showing up to talk with Shen Yuan as the owner of the stern voice hopped over the wall in a single bound and landed right in front of Luo Binghe. “I’m a disciple of this peak,” Luo Binghe said.
“You’re here for Shen Yuan?” The stunningly pretty cultivator asked.
“I am,” Luo Binghe said. “He doesn’t mind! He told me to come back.”
“Then what are you doing skulking around the back wall?” The man asked, crossing his arms and scowling down at Luo Binghe.
“Shizun instructed everyone not to disturb his brother,” Luo Binghe said guiltily, looking at his shoes. The beautiful man grunted.
“He’s sick,” the man said.
“Oh, alright,” Luo Binghe said, drooping. “Can you tell him I came? Tell him I hope he gets better soon.” The man grunted again and hopped back over the wall. Luo Binghe decided to take that grunt as an affirmative.
Thwarted in his mission to meet Shen Yuan, Luo Binghe sniffed and went away to cultivate. He had just made it all the way back to the other disciples when the man from earlier dropped off a sword behind Luo Binghe.
“Liu-shishu!” Another disciple exclaimed. “What brings you here?”
“You,” the man said, looking directly at Luo Binghe.
“Me?” Luo Binghe said.
“Come,” Liu Qingge demanded. Luo Binghe wasted no time in jogging up to Liu Qingge, who turned and walked swiftly back towards the bamboo house. Little Luo Binghe had to jog the whole way to keep up, but he was buoyed up by excitement at, hopefully, both getting to go into a forbidden area and seeing Shen Yuan.
His hope was realized when he was led out the back door of the bamboo house and into a small walled garden with a tiny cottage in the far corner. There Luo Binghe saw Shen Yuan standing, using a cane to support himself. Shen Yuan smiled warmly as Luo Binghe gawked at his beautiful shixiong. Shen Yuan looked just like Shen Qingqiu, but happier, a few years older, and with a bright red face.
“Hello, Luo-shidi. Thanks for retrieving him, Liu-shishu,” Shen Yuan said. Liu Qingge grunted and ordered Shen Yuan to sit down. “Come on in, Luo-shidi,” Shen Yuan said, unfazed by Liu Qingge’s gruff manner. Luo Binghe wasted no time and hurried into the little house. “I’ve put on a pot of water for tea, but it will take a while yet.”
“How are you feeling, Shen-shixiong?” Luo Binghe asked noting the exhaustion in Shen Yuan’s voice and movements.
“Today’s not a good day,” Shen Yuan said.
“What’s wrong with you, exactly, if it’s not too presumptuous of me to ask, Shen-shixiong?” Luo Binghe asked.
“It’s fine,” Shen Yuan said. “I was born with a weak body. I’ve always been this way.”
“I thought cultivators didn’t get sick,” Luo Binghe said.
“You’re right, but I’m not a cultivator.”
“Oh,” Luo Binghe said. “Then, how did you…?”
“My brother took me in when he became head disciple. After he became the Peak Lord, he made me an official disciple,” Shen Yuan explained. “I had decent cultivation potential, but I lost it as a child, before I ever even set foot in this sect. I have no ability to cultivate now. Honestly, my brother’s efforts are the only reason I’m doing as well as I am. He hunts for treasures that help extend my life.”
“How did you lose it?” Luo Binghe asked. “Could that happen to me?”
“Don’t worry. You’re safe here, so you’ll be able to cultivate as much as you like. I lost mine when I was attacked by a cultivator.”
“That’s terrible!”
“Yeah… I was furious about it at the time, but I’ve gotten used to how things are. I’m grateful for how things have turned out, actually. I’ve gotten to live a better life than most people do, you know? I have more food than I can eat, good friends, plenty of books, a safe home, as much medicine as I need, a loving family, adorable shidis… It’s not all bad.” Shen Yuan reached out and rubbed Luo Binghe’s head soothingly. Luo Binghe’s blushed and his eyes sparkled. “Would you like to see the newest bestiary my brother made for me? And Liu-shishu brought an amazing beast with him this time! Would you like to see it?”
As Luo Binghe professed a desire to see the beast (which ended up being a profoundly creepy, completely dead, and partially dissected, brain eating spider thing with a human face), he was struck by how wonderful his shixiong was. Shen Yuan really was an amazing person. Luo Binghe wanted to hug him and make him something to delicious to eat.
That feeling didn’t even abate as Shen Yuan oohed and awed over the monster. Luo Binghe didn’t get it, but Shen Yuan and Liu Qingge seemed to appreciate the ugly beast.
“Thank you for bringing it to me, Liu-shishu,” Shen Yuan said, wobbling a bit as he turned back towards Liu Qingge. “It really is an amazing specimen.”
“Sure thing,” Liu Qingge said. And. Put. His. Hand. On. Shen Yuan’s. Elbow.
Luo Binghe despised the man instantly. The strength and suddenness of the feeling surprised Luo Binghe and a tiny flicker of anxiety lit within him.
“Uh-oh,” Luo Binghe thought, as his heart pounded in his chest and he identified the jealousy for what it was. “I have a crush on Shen-shixiong.”
…
It wasn’t long after that that Ning Yingying met Luo Binghe’s secret tutor, much to Luo Binghe’s initial chagrin.
Ning Yingying had followed Luo Binghe, despite his best efforts to lose her, popping out of the brush that grew on the outside of the path that ran around the wall of Shen Yuan’s garden when Luo Binghe had just caught his daily box of leftovers.
As Ning Yingying and Shen Yuan introduced themselves and chatted happily, Luo Binghe grew surly and jealous. He knew he shouldn’t be feeling that way. He should be glad that his two favorite people were with him. He wasn’t. He was the opposite of glad. He wanted Shen Yuan to rely on Luo Binghe alone for company. He didn’t like his secret friend meeting other people, even Ning Yingying.
That feeling abated as Shen Yuan drew Luo Binghe into the conversation. As the afternoon wore on and Luo Binghe shared his afternoon snack with Ning Yingying, Shen Yuan continually complimented Luo Binghe and Ning Yinying cheered Luo Binghe on as he described how his day had gone and how well he had done in class. By the time Shen Yuan was getting sleepy, Luo Binghe was, if not happy, then at least comfortable with the situation, as his worries about being neglected because of Ning Yingying abated. When Ning Yingying asked if she could come with Luo Binghe to visit Shen Yuan the next day, Luo Binghe didn’t mind too much when Shen Yuan gave her permission.
“Look after Luo-shidi, for me, will you, Ning-shimei?” Shen Yuan requested.
“Of course, Shen-shixiong!” Ning Yingying said happily.
Maybe it wasn’t so bad that they were all friends now, Luo Binghe decided. Everything was going to be fine.